Chapter 11:
Mildred came into Mr. Steele's office and found them wholly immersed in their conversation.
"I brought some coffee. You two have been locked in this room for about two hours. Do you need anything else?" she asked.
Miss Holt stared at her, thinking. "I need you to run a search about Caroline Meyers and Andrea Meyers, Mildred. Try to find everything since they were born."
"It will take a while, Miss Holt. Do you need anything else?"
"Try to find anything about Edmund Pollack. Since he left school until the day he died. Look for properties, bank accounts, and stock actions too, Mildred."
"Ok, chief. I'm on my way," said Mildred. She left the office, and after making herself a cup of tea, she sat at her desk and started the required search.
"Why do you think it's necessary to investigate Caroline?" asked Mr. Steele to Miss Holt.
"I didn't like the stare that Mrs. Becker and Caroline gave to each other this morning. I feel they know each other very well, and that they'd had some differences in the past. Since we have Mrs. Becker's file, the part that we need to find is Caroline's, and her sister Andrea." She took a sip of her coffee. "Why do you think it's necessary to investigate Mr. Pollack?"
"As I was deeply impressed by Mrs. Becker's narration, I was wondering why she told her husband almost the whole story, and she hid it from Mr. Pollack. It sounds odd. After all, Mr. Pollack was a friend."
"Maybe she didn't have the courage. But now that you mention it, it sounds odd, indeed."
"What do you say if we go to the Tennis Club and have a nice lunch? I miss spending our lunch time together, Miss Holt," said Mr. Steele.
"Sounds good to me. It'll give us the chance to ask more questions to the staff there. I have a feeling…"
"A feeling about what?" he asked.
"We'll talk about it later, Mr. Steele. I'll ask Mildred to call Fred."
They arrived at the Tennis Club and went directly to the bar. They found a nice table, and Laura saw the waiter coming towards them. "Good Afternoon. Are you ready to order?" asked the man.
"In a minute," said Laura. "But I would like to ask you something before we give you our order. I remember you told me the other day that you've been working here for a long time. Do you know if Mr. Pollack's daughter used to come here to play tennis?"
"Yes, madam. They used to play together, and after that, they always shared a table here with Mrs. Becker. She was a nice lady. It was sad she died too young."
"Thank you," said Laura.
"How did you know that?" asked Mr. Steele.
"Well, it's what I'd call a hunch. I suppose your thought about how odd it was that Mrs. Becker didn't tell the truth to Mr. Pollack aroused my curiosity. If she did tell him, and they did follow a relationship with their daughter, they would have needed a place to meet with her. What better place than this one, full of people distracted over their own tennis play conversations? They would be able to share with her something else they both loved: sports. Remember that Mrs. Pollack and Mr. Becker are not sports lovers. So, they'd felt free and comfortable here."
"Do you think we have a suspect here, Laura? We don't even have a confirmed murder yet, and we already have a suspect? God, you are getting more than good every time," he stated with an air of pride.
"We, Mr. Steele, we are getting more than good. Remember we are a team."
"Indeed, Miss Holt. Indeed."